This book investigates the use of English third person pronouns (he, she,
it) across different varieties of English, where we frequently find 'he'
and 'she' used for inanimate objects (the tree – he, the house – he, the
bucket – he, but the water – it). It is the first book-length study of this
subject. Varieties of English are discussed in the context of Germanic and
Romance languages and dialects as well as a small sample of additional
languages. The analysis is conducted within the framework set out by
functional typology. With this book a straightforward and illuminating
generalization in terms of the well known hierarchy of individuation is
offered, which provides a systematic link between pronominal usage in
Standard English and its varieties.